I understood that stop hunting existed only because traders are putting in big orders around where people might put their stops, and maybe that is the case, but today I saw something that has never happened to me before. The spread literally jumped to 6 pips on one trade, and 8 pips on the other (more than double the normal spread on both). CRAZY!
I immediately checked the Ask price candles, and it didn’t even demonstrate this jump until the candles closed, and then the candles added wicks; not sure what that is about but it seems ruthless as hell if not unethical. So yeah, going to have to beat the temptation not to use stops because I already learned that lesson long ago 
And yes, both of these trades ended up going in the direction that I had theorized.
When the candles close, for the ask and the bid, it represents the spread at that exact moment in time (the exact time at which the candles close, or open). The difference between the ask and the bid price at this time has no relevance to what the spread may have been during the period of each candle.
So as the candle closed and a new time period candle opened you are saying that wicks were added to the candle? 
That’s exactly what I’m saying. When I saw that my chart was from my stop, I scratched my head and changed to the ask price. It was still several pips under the resistance line (I was using pivot points). Still scratching my head, when the candle closed (M5), the candle then extended just past my stop. Switching back and forth between the bid/ask candles, the difference between the two highs was 6 pips, which is what I am guessing must have been a quick widening of the spread. That’s the weird part, didn’t seem like a normal whipsaw.
Stop hunting forex lesson and use your own trading strategy and gain a lot of profit…
Here’s a thread on this issue @BaconSandwich - Seemingly quite conclusive imho
https://forums.babypips.com/t/whats-with-the-long-tails/119718
Hey @Falstaff
It actually doesn’t seem quite conclusive after reading the entire thread, at least in the respect of getting a unanimous agreement - unless of course we are pointing to artificially windening, which i’m sure takes place and is rather hard to prove from an ‘outsiders’ point of view.
Widening of the spreads is understandable enough and even the spreads racing ahead of price when price is tanking is quite understandable.
The “long tails” on that thread are akin to what OP was talking of here and I think if you demand “unanimity” to assess something as “quite convincing” - perhaps I shall never convince you of Anything !
Regardless of what does and doesn’t affect painted wicks on a chart; if a few pips either side is what makes the difference between being profitable and not in the long run then it’s an approach where the user is simply inviting manipulation: again if this can be proven - which in most cases it simply can’t (which to the contrary is more of a reason for it to indeed happen).
I guess another reason why you have to be savvy and at least try to reduce or eliminate such theoretical practices taking an effect on your own speculative bets.
All very interesting mate 
But what has it to do with either thread ? 
Oh i’m sorry, i’ve copied the first post here for you again.
Also the title of the thread is called “Stop Hunting Lesson”, hence a theoretical practice which is hard to prove (in the retail trading area at least)
But the thread I linked to - pretty much does exactly that ! - ESPECIALLY in “retail” (counter-party - betting)
Yes, no one is in disagreement with that buddy, i’m not sure what you’re trying to get at? Anyway…
Having already said ;
In response to my ;
I hink I’ll probably leave this one to you for now- at least until you get a chance to sleep it off !
I believe you’re trying to be semantic here, again, no one was in disagreement with your thread, just the fact that it was stated as “seemingly quite conclusive”; which it wasn’t as there was no proof and simply speculations - as is most of the hearsay in this industry.
Sleep well 
Usually if occurred spread like as jumped to higher spread, this because we trade in high volatility market, if look back on this beginning week, there are some news and issue regarding Brexit still become big rumor among trader, maybe if we use broker with floating spread it can occur spread like as jumped, there are certain broker that increasing margin requirement for GBP because news about Brexit still possible to make the market being higher volatile